This was the first time I’ve been to the Magnolia Plantation area in Charleston for a wedding. I’ve done some engagement pictures here, but never a full wedding. The first time to a new site is always exciting. I do a lot of looking around trying to find some spots with good lighting and background details. We also had a golf cart driver that took us around to some popular spots.
The young bride and groom had a beautiful ceremony in the gardens with a unique circular setup of the chairs for the ceremony. After the ceremony we went to some of the popular spots such as the white bridge and the bamboo forest. We found a cute gazebo for pictures and I got a beautiful shot of the couple reflecting in one of the lakes. They even wore Converse sneakers for the wedding, I made sure to get a good picture of those. There are so many beautiful spots around the gardens with great sunlight filtering through the lush foliage.
The reception was in the Magnolia Plantation Conservatory, which is a really cool spot. It’s an indoor garden area with a small section with tables for the guests. The bride and groom were pretty flexible, so we even spent a few minutes experimenting with a few nighttime, off-camera lighting shots in the garden area. I was putting a flash with umbrella in the background to give some highlights to the foliage behind them. Experimenting is always fun if there is a little extra time. I’m looking forward to my wedding in a couple of weeks at this location and I hope I get some more in the future as well. As always please comment below if you enjoy these pictures.
